Page 23 of Burned

The man’s eyes are so wide they look like they could pop out of his head.

“State your business with us,” Lord demands.

The man can’t seem to form a sentence as he trips over his words and produces nothing but garbled noises.

Lord lifts the man back up by his shirt, holding him close to his face. “Don’t you ever come near me or mine again. Next time you will feel my fire.”

The man nods, shifting his gaze to me for a second before finally saying, “Wasn’t gonna hurt you. You looked rich.” He has an American accent. Clearly, he’s out of his element.

“Ah. You planned to rob us.” Lord clicks sharp white teeth. “You should be careful. You never know who you’ll encounter in the woods.” He drops the man to the ground. “Run along before I change my mind and eat you for an after-dinner snack.”

The man scrambles to his feet, tearing off into the woods without even looking back. In the space of a blink, Lord appears normal again, except for the fact that his shirt is shredded and barely clinging to his skin.

He saved me.

He definitely didn’t set me up.

And fucking hell, he’s gorgeous in both forms.

I immediately wonder what he looks like completely shifted, and my body’s reaction to that thought is startling.

But maybe the strangest, most confusing part of it all is that he didn’t hurt that man. He would have been justified in roasting him, but instead he gave him a warning and let him go. My head spins and I can’t quite make sense of it.

Lord pulls the rest of his shirt off before digging in his bag for a replacement. After he tugs it over his head and drags a hand through his hair, he finally settles his gaze on me. I can’t lie and say I don’t want to see the orange glow again.

“Obviously, I’m a dragon,” he says, his voice filled with guarded concern. “And also obviously, I mean no harm. Can you say the same?”

Swallowing hard, I get to my feet as a thousand conflicted emotions clutter my head. I’m supposed towantto kill him, but all I want to do right now is hold him.

“You saved me…” I chuckle and run my fingers through my tangled hair. “Again.”

He nods, but his jaw is set and his eyes are hard. He’s waiting for me to turn on him.

“Thank you.” I take a step toward him, aware of how his body tenses. Without thinking it through, I drag my hand down his arm, noticing the hitch in his breath. “That was pretty badass.”

His expression doesn’t change at all.

“I won’t hurt you, Lord. It’s obvious you’re only trying to help me, and I appreciate it.”

“But you want to, right? You’re holding back?”

His question raises my hackles. “Are you?”

“I’m not ahunter,” he grits out. “Contrary to what you’ve been told, I’m not a mindless beast intent on the destruction of innocent people.”

I back down. “I can see that. There’s a reason I’ve failed to live up to my family’s legacy so far, you know.”

“Care to tell me why?”

Could I? “Maybe later. But I assure you, I have no ill will towards you.”

“Same.”

I offer my hand and after he gazes at it for a moment, he shakes it.

“Let’s keep going, huh?” I say.

“Yes.”

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